“I
think we [Pogba and Matic] play together very well,” Matic told
United’s official website on Friday. “We help each other. I have to say
he played good in attack and also helped a lot when we were defending.
He always played next to me. We are there on the pitch to fight for each
other. We will continue like this and I’m happy to have him in the
team.”
It’s
interesting that Matic points out Pogba’s defensive contribution,
because that isn’t something the Frenchman has often been praised for.
Criticisms of Pogba’s defensive awareness seemed justified at times last
season, particularly from set pieces.
It
is illuminating, though, how quickly inserting a player like Matic into
a football team can improve the perception of the players around him.
Another complaint about Pogba last season, less fair than barbs about
his defensive game, surrounded the idea that a footballer costing £89
million should be able to perform without players bought specifically to
help him out.
It’s
a nonsense theory, of course, and the signing of Matic proves it.
Mourinho knows that Pogba’s game is at its best when he is allowed to
break forward without concern for what is going on behind him. The
fourth goal against West Ham, when Pogba strode into an advanced
midfield area before unleashing a precise shot past Joe Hart, is the
kind of thing Mourinho must have envisaged when he bought Matic.
Initial
impressions, only. If Matic and Pogba dovetail against Swansea City on
Saturday like they did against West Ham, perhaps United supporters will
have cause to get giddier.
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